Graham Onions talks Ashes chances and Durham on the Cricket AM sofa

Graham Onions told Cricket AM that he hasn't given up hope of playing in this summer's Ashes series.

The Durham seamer's last Test match for England came against West Indies in June 2012 and he is being kept out of his country's seam attack by James Anderson, Stuart Broad, and Steven Finn.

However, the 30-year-old, who has taken 32 wickets in his nine games in the five-day arena, has picked up a slew of scalps for his county in this term's LV= County Championship Division One.

And he told Matt Floyd and Sarah-Jane Mee that he is "desperate" to feature against Australia and especially eager to play for England at his home ground in Chester-le street, which hosts the fourth of this year's five Ashes duels.

"It would be amazing if I pulled on an England shirt at the Durham Test match."

Graham Onions

"An Ashes series against your bitter rivals is exciting and I'm desperate to be involved in it," said Gateshead-born Onions, who has claimed 25 wickets at an average of 22.76 in Durham's whites this season.

"I would sacrifice not playing against New Zealand to play against Australia - and it would be amazing if I pulled on an England shirt at the Durham Test match.

"The most important thing for me is to put pressure on the guys in the national side; I'm going well at the moment for Durham and if keep on playing well I might get a call-up because people can't ignore you for too long if you keep taking a lot of wickets.

Strong

"I feel that bowling consistently with the red ball is my strength, while I bring something a little bit different in that I make the batter play as much as possible, bowl with enough pace and can swing the ball as well.

"But county cricket is so strong that there are plenty of other cricketers who can take England players' places - and I think that's what will make us number one in the Test rankings again."

Onions, however, is also hopeful of plucking silverware with Durham in 2013, with the North East outfit currently sitting fourth in the County Championship and third in their YB40 pool.

"Some people in the press think we could go down in the Championship as we haven't got an overseas player or a great deal of experience - but we are proving people wrong," said Onions, whose club won the domestic four-day title in 2008 and 2009.

"Our team is quite versatile as we have got quality seamers and good spinners and that will always give us a chance of winning games, and our batters are doing the goods, too.

"It would be nice to say we are going to win some trophies but we know it's a long slog - but we are sitting happy right now and doing some good things."